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Amid the distribution of consolation money and the holding of the funeral, a quiet internal investigation within the Fischer family also began.

Irene called each person into the room individually to have a detailed conversation with her.

She deftly guided their malicious words and, through the ability “Listening for Malice,” sensed the deepest thoughts within everyone in the Fischer family.

To make everyone willing to accept the command, even Byrne himself was no exception to her scrutiny.

Although there were a few servants and guards who were found to have some malice or who had stolen from the family, the entire round of investigation did not turn up the so-called traitor.

A few days later, around noon, Byrne paced back and forth in the great hall. After much thought, he suddenly said to the Guards Captain standing not far away:

“Theo, call your wife over.”

Theo was stunned for a moment, immense fear rising in his heart at the possibility, but he still followed Byrne’s orders.

“Alright, understood. I’ll go right away.”

He lived on the estate and seldom went home, visiting at most for a day or two in a month. In reality, his relationship with his wife had not been very good lately.

Although the work was exceedingly hard, Theo’s monthly salary was five times that of ordinary guards, and his annual bonus was ten times as much.

So he had always been hard-working and compliant, harboring no dissatisfaction towards the Fischer family in his heart.

Theo’s wife was also brought into the family estate. It was her first time inside the grand estate, and she was extremely astonished, staring at the crystal chandelier on the ceiling for a long time.

“How beautiful. How much does this cost?”

A few servants saw her impoverished demeanor and snickered privately.

Irene communicated with her in the room alone, skillfully using words to probe for any deep-seated malice in her heart.

She indeed harbored malice, but it was only dissatisfaction with the Fischer family for always keeping Theo tied down, and she had no other thoughts beyond that.

It seemed that Theo’s wife was not the informant, and both Theo and Byrne were relieved after getting the response from Irene.

Byrne truly did not wish for the problem to lie with Theo’s wife.

Theo, that man nearing fifty, was not only his swordsmanship teacher, Guards Captain, and coachman.

He was also a warrior who had accompanied the Fischer family for many years, and, like Vanessa and the other young men and women, he could be considered as half a family member, a trusted figure within the Fischer household.

If the traitor turned out to be his wife, according to the Fischer family’s rules, they would definitely have to execute her secretly.

Even if Theo agreed with the Fischer family’s punishment, he would still harbor negative emotions afterwards, and Byrne could no longer trust him with important tasks, but it was also impossible to let him leave the family.

The worst-case scenario would be a marginalized Theo eventually overwhelmed by negative emotions, impulsively choosing to betray the family.

Although all these were speculative possibilities, just thinking about them made Byrne’s head tingle with dread—it was practically the development he feared the most in his personality.

Theo was also truly relieved; after his wife left, he pondered for a long time before taking leave from Mr. Lucius, saying he was truly a bit exhausted recently and wanted to go home.

In fact, the reason he gave was true.

Tired.

This small-scale nighttime defense battle had cost the lives of only seven family guards—a loss that appeared negligible in the eyes of Extraordinary Exponents.

It was instead considered worthy of great fanfare; they had casually dealt with a Level 2 Extraordinary Exponent who had attempted a night raid!

But Theo’s mood was completely different.

He had eaten daily with those guards, and he remembered one young guard who, when he had first arrived at the Fischer estate, was always lively and humorous, often able to make everyone laugh heartily after training.

But Theo had heard that at the start of the battle, the young man had been eaten alive by a worm, losing half his body while wailing in front of everyone, only to be put out of his misery by a mercy shot from a friend.

The guard who had delivered the mercy shot had also told him the previous night that he had decided to quit and was planning to work in a factory in Fein City.

Not just him.

Theo remembered every detail about each of the deceased guards—their names, faces, personalities, and hobbies.

They were all once living beings.

Therefore, he had to attend seven funerals, seeing the relatives and friends of those people crying bitterly seven times.

Theo had once been a boatswain on a merchant ship that hustled across the sea, most of the time engaged in trade, occasionally turning to piracy.

The feeling of killing and robbing was not pleasant, but Theo knew he was the captain’s man and had to remain loyal to the ship.

Because it was difficult for his wife to take care of their son by herself, and after a severe injury in a naval battle, Theo decided to spend the rest of his days in Nasir Town and to cease sailing the seas.

But, living off the sea, Theo could only earn a living as a carpenter, and the household income plummeted starkly.

After the birth of their second child, no longer able to stomach the hardships of poverty, Theo discussed with his wife that he had to find a way to earn more money.

Later, through an introduction by sea merchant John, Mr. Lucius met him immediately.

“Lucius, Theo is a very capable battle commander. I even wanted him to be my boatswain, what a pity,” said John.

At that moment, Theo immediately said, “Sorry, I really don’t want to go back to sea anymore.”

He remembered how that lazy-looking man had sized him up for a long time before nodding and saying:

“Theo, heh, you have a remarkable gaze, one that only comes from a man who has seen many battles.”

“If you can withstand three strikes from me, you can join the Fischer family as the Guards Captain. But you must use real weapons, not wood. Do you have the courage?”

“Fine,” Theo nodded.

He not only blocked Lucius’s three consecutive strikes but also swiftly dodged away from a surprise fourth strike aimed at his arm.

“You’re quite good. You understand that once weapons are drawn, there are no rules in battle. Our Fischer shield needs to be not only tough but also nimble!”

“You’ve passed!”

Mr. Lucius was indeed a cunning fellow, Theo had judged at the time.

Over the years, Theo had killed some people for the Fischer family, knowing that as the Guards Captain, he had to be loyal to them.

No matter what the Fischers asked him to do, he couldn’t refuse as he had been taking their money for many years.

Theo believed loyalty and responsibility were the most important qualities.

Training the family guards came naturally to him, after all, few people could be worse than the band of nearly pirates on board the ship.

However, Byrne, who had returned from the military academy two years earlier, shook his head, saying his method of taming those brats was pointless.

“I need to turn them into soldiers who can fight low-level Extraordinary Exponents face to face.”

“Not a bunch of fools who know how to wave weapons around.”

Mr. Byrne and Mr. Lucius were two completely different people.

He was originally a kind and timid smart kid, fond of learning and good at observing and summarizing.

In recent years, Mr. Byrne had grown rapidly, becoming increasingly composed and finally being able to do things for the family that he was reluctant to do before.

In the past two years, Byrne had taught him many things from the military academy, enlightening Theo who had never undergone systematic training.

His previously chaotic experiences unfolded in his mind, and many questions found answers and explanations.

Yet, his many years as the Guards Captain forced Theo to neglect his own family.

His home was in South City, Nasir Town, a house that was not very large.

When he got home, Theo saw his wife struggling with moving things and immediately took them from her hands.

His wife asked in surprise, “Theo, why have you come home today? Isn’t it not yet your day off?”

Theo managed a smile and nodded as he replied, “Mr. Byrne gave me a day off today, so I came back now to rest for a day.”

“Truly, traveling a long distance is draining. I want to take a bath right now.”

“Mm.”

His wife nodded and headed back to the room without saying much, silently preparing the bath for him.

After putting down the things, Theo suddenly felt that she was reluctant to deal with him; his daughter was at home preparing food and was also surprised to see him back.

“…”

He sat in the chair, and for a long while heard not even a single word from his wife; he knew she was really angry.

Theo didn’t think he had done anything wrong; although he could not come home often, he brought back most of the money.

It was normal for him not to be able to communicate with his family when his daily life revolved around life and death to support them.

If he hadn’t devoted himself wholeheartedly to serving the Fischer family, they would never have let him become a confidant!

Thinking this, he suddenly felt annoyed. He risked his life for his family, didn’t keep mistresses, and didn’t squander money; why was she still angry!

After all, when I first said I wanted to find a more lucrative job, you agreed!

“Where is my son?”

Theo asked loudly; where had his eldest son gone without being at home?

His wife took a deep breath and responded coldly,

“Do you even remember you have a son? A few days ago, he left Nasir with some friends, saying he wanted to find a job in Fein City rather than be idle at home.”

“What?”

Theo was dumbfounded, disbelieving his son could sneak away like that, and asked incredulously,

“You’re saying he went to Fein City? When did this happen, and how come I know nothing about it?”

“Of course, you don’t know; you don’t know anything. You were out with Master Byrne then, and by the time you came back, it was too late, and I couldn’t persuade him!”

His wife’s speech was urgent, and as she spoke, she began to cry, tears falling one after another.

“If he gets bullied out there, or something happens to him, I’ll hate you for the rest of my life!”

Theo had no reply and only after a while did he ask puzzled, “He wouldn’t do such a thing before, why would he be so bold all of a sudden… Could it be those friends led him astray? Who are his friends?”

Finally unable to hold back, his wife screamed,

“The number of times you’ve seen him in the past few years is less than the times you’ve seen those brothers. Do you really know what his character is like, what kind of person he is now?”

“And now you ask, don’t you think it’s too late?”

Theo was entirely at a loss for words and could not bring himself to apologize or offer comfort. After his wife cried in silence and said no more, the family spent the entire evening in silence.

He understood one thing very clearly. He already knew too much, and even if he wanted to leave the Fischer family, it was impossible.

The Fischer family could make a person who previously had no extraordinary power suddenly possess extraordinary power.

Theo lay in bed and took a deep breath.

The terrifying truth of the greatest secret had yet to be fully revealed to him, but Mr. Byrne and Madam Irene both suggested to him covertly the existence of some unimaginable great power.

It, indeed, existed.

Until the next morning, Theo, who hadn’t slept all night, learned from a message delivered by a guard from the Fischer family.

The person who had leaked his and Mr. Byrne’s whereabouts had been found.